Rooted

I was watching the Oprah's Lifeclass webcast and they said that I have to be my authentic self and tell the truth. Â So, here is my truth: I have a crush!

Ever meet someone that is super cool? Â Someone that is funny, intelligent, well-spoken? Someone that actually pays attention to you. That responds when you reach out? Â I know I have. Â This crush began last year , probably within a week of me starting this blog. Â I am not sure how I came across the name. Â How I found the site. Â But I have a mami crush on The Mommyologist!

I have taken The Pledge that speaks of how to treat others on the web. Â I know that a lot of horrible things happen out there but, I have been so blessed to not have had that experience. Â And Mary was the first contact I had with another blogger. Â At the time, I believe she was voted most awesomest blog ever to exist on the internets by Parents Connect (I'm paraphrasing here). Â So imagine my surprise when she returned an email to a comment I'd posted.

Following that I began toÂ stalk herÂ read her blog on the regular. Â I feel like I know her so well. Â How could I not? I know she pees herself a little sometimes and that's totally okay because, haven't we all? Â I know that she is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to poop, especially if it doesn't want to come out. Â I know where she got married (and should anyone ever be crazy enough to make me into an honest woman, I totally want to at least consider Cheeca Bay! It's beautiful). Â I know all kinds of things about her! Â So you see why I heart her?

What I love the most is that she keeps it real. Â When I first started thinking about my blog, I would comment to Robin (I was Batman) that I wanted to get back to being a sexy mami. Â And wouldn't you know it? The Mommyologist was there to help me figure out what that looked like by creating the Mom Sexy craze (I'm sure I was the inspiration. Â She just didn't know it. Â Well, me and the peeing at zumba thing)! Â She says the things that we are thinking in a way that is full of humor and awesomeness. Â Motherhood is not easy but man, it makes the ride so much better when you have women around you that not only are experiencing what you are but are willing to share it! Â As women, I don't think we share enough (and to that end, I'll be talking about my boobs later).

I Make Milk, What's Your Superpower? was written in order to link up to her blogoversary last year. Â I think it's one of my favorite blogs. Â Mary had been doing this for almost a year when I started my blog. Â It was such an inspiration for me to see all that she had accomplished. Â And, as I see her grow and transform herself, it gives me hope that I too can do it. Â That if I hustle and follow my dreams, I'll be able to "make it" in the bloggy world. Â As I decided to pursue my dream of writing after the lay off, I am fueled by so many moms who have felt like I felt and who have figured out another way to make what matters a priority.

Blogging has blessed me with meeting a great many mamis. Â Alas, Mary is one of many. Â But dammit, she was my first! Â And now you know. Â Oprah says that this should make me feel better. Â Here's hoping Mary doesn't block me from any contact with her.

I really want a t-shirt with that message. I think I deserve it. But then again I feel that the t-shirt should say so much more (but who would read it and would there be enough material?).

My mother did not lie to me about giving birth. She told me that it would hurt. But that you always wait for the bigger wave and it never comes. That you actually want it to hurt more because you know you are one step closer to seeing your child and that when you do, all the pain would be worth it. She was right.

Mami also did not lie to me about breastfeeding. Her exact words: it'll hurt more than labor. Really, mami? I mean come on. EVERYONE has heard of labor pains. I have watched countless movies illustrating this. Not ONCE have I seen anything on television that shows this breastfeeding pain that you're talking about. I dismissed the statement though it was filed in the back of my head.

Enter the day of labor (details on this later). My child is set upon my breast where she roots and finds what she is looking for. Success! Maggie, my doula, loves it! She has been preparing me for this. All looks well. Except...

It kinda hurts a little. When I get up to my room, I know JUST what to ask for. After all, I have done my research. "Can I get some Lansinoh?" I asked the nurse. "Already?" she said and looked at me with the side-eye. I said it with so much determination that I know the look on my face said "I know what I'm doing, okay?" I'm sure the nurse laughed on the inside and thought, "she won't last." Well, I wish I could find her and tell her HA! But, I digress.

Where was I? Ah! The pain, yes. The next day I was visited by the lactation consultant who caught me while I was nursing. "Oh you are doing great!" she said. And I'm thinking, hmmm, really? Because it hurts a little more. "The latch is good and she looks like she's getting colostrum". I feel successful yet sore. She then proceeds to tell me that my child will go into this thing called "cluster" feeding that I'd never heard of. The only thing I know of that includes the word cluster is not a good thing. Well, that should have been my first clue.

I applied the cream and continued to nurse. Did I mention that my boob was bigger than my child's head? Okay, I should mention that now. My boobs were glorious and shiny and full of nutrition. I'd done good. But my nipples were killing me. Was I doing something wrong? No! The lactation consultant said nothing about wrong. She said good! She even did magic by taking my nipple and showing me that colostrum was coming out (prior to this I was doubting the whole "there's food in my boob" bit). I did hear, several times that if it was hurting then something wasn't right. But since she said everything was okay I just kept going. Through the pain.

Fast forward to four nights after the birth. I'm home. I think I have this down. My nipples are SCREAMING at me. I imagine they sound like New York City construction workers on a hot afternoon in Manhattan when they are behind on a project. My boobs are the size of cantaloupes. It hurts when I even think about latching her on. But I keep nursing.

The man was upset because he does not like to watch me in pain. His words were something like: I had to watch you go through 40 hours of labor, I can't take watching you suffer every time you feed her (because Lord knows that the words "it hurt me more than it hurt you" would totally apply here, right? Enter appropriate sarcastic look on my face...now!).

But he doesn't understand. I think, "this is what my body is made for". This is what I was meant to do in the same way that I always thought my uterus would hold a baby. I am severely hardheaded. It's a condition and I am afraid it's genetic. Meanwhile, I am starting to pump. The man thinks I should sleep more so he wakes up with the child in the middle of the night and let's me sleep. Pretty great, right? WRONG! I would wake up in such pain from my boobs being too full that I didn't know what to do with myself. I'd have to get up, put the contraption together and then pump. That takes a lot more time/energy than latching a leech, I mean, child onto me.

I find the local chapter of La Leche League. One of the leaders calls me back after an email. She tells me the one thing no one else had (other than my mother). It hurts. She also tells me that it's probably going to hurt for 6 weeks. Really? SIX WEEKS?! I want to sue all the movies I've seen where a mom has lovingly put her child on her breast and continued on with life as if she wasn't feeling that the child was going to pull her nipple off, spit it out and continue nursing. I also want to beat all of my friends that have kids until they feel the same pain that I do. But at least I hear this. I watch YouTube videos on latching. I attempt to do what they do. I continue to lube up with Lansinoh.

Three weeks later, after shedding tears that could've filled up my roman tub I call Maggie. Maggie berates me a little for not having contacted her earlier and gives me a name. She says "this woman is the best". And I think, I don't know if she can fix this. I contact Pat, finally. See, the baby has been gaining weight just fine up until now. So it must be me. The first miracle: she calls me on a Sunday. The next, she sounds as if this is okay and not as if I am a weakling and perhaps doing this wrong. When I go see her, Pat informs me that the child is not latching on properly and has only been grabbing the nipple. Even when she does latch on right, the fact that I have so much milk makes her latch off so that her tongue can control the milk flow thereby making her grab on to the nipple which is causing me pain (thanks to the hot chocolate my mom's been making me drink (more on that tidbit later)“ and the fact that I've also been pumping it seems that I was making enough milk for twins!).

Pat manhandles me (and didn't even buy me a drink!) and seamlessly grabs my child's head and just plops her on. I think is that child abuse? I mean here I've been all delicate with the kid and Pat grabs my boob and her head and just BAM. If she doesn't latch on right (the baby, not Pat), she simply puts a finger in the side of her mouth and off she comes only to be latched on again. I watch in awe and wonder if Pat would consider coming home with me. I didn't want to ask because at this point I feel like an emotional wreck and am concerned someone will Baker Act me and then who will I nurse in the mental institution and will they let me pump in there?

She sends me off with some great information and a little cream that she conjures up in her office. Turns out I had a little yeast on my breast and it was causing the pain and some cracking (yeah, did I mention I had cracked nipples?!). Thankfully, the baby didn't have thrush. However, it meant that it would take a while for my nipples to heal. The thing is, you don't stop nursing while they do (at least I didn't. See hard headed statement above).

Throughout this time, mami kept giving me that look. You know the one. But it's different now. It's not just "I told you so". Being the great mami that she is, the look said, "I told you so, but I wish I could make you feel better".

So you see, I think I REALLY deserve that t-shirt. It would say:

I Make Milk

(It caused me a lot of pain (and my mother said it would), I needed a lot of support (thank you Pat for feeling me up and making me a better lactator), I'd totally do it again and plan on telling ALL THE WOMEN I can the truth about boobs as nutritional elements)

What's Your Superpower?

At work, I pump twice a day. Though for a while there I was only doing it once because I'd get caught up in the day and oh, let's not forget the mami brain. Then when I called Pat and wondered where my milk was going her first question was: are you pumping every 2 to 3 hours? I think she's had this conversation before. My office mate and best bud (let's call her Robin) sits back-to-back with me at opposite ends of the room and gets to hear the melodic err-err-err of my Medela Freestyle when I pump. She likes to make fun of me and tells anyone who listens that I am milking. The best giggles out of her come when I am in the middle of pumping and someone knocks on the door and proceeds to turn the knob immediately after (why do they bother knocking, I ask?). We have a lock, but she still thinks it's hilarious because then I have to say: "give me a minute!"or lately because hello?! It's been months and YOU know when the door is closed I am busy I say, "I'm pumping!" But my revenge is sweet. Through my sophisticated Jedi mind control, whenever she hears the pump and if she hasn't gone to the bathroom in the last 10 minutes, it makes her want to pee. But I don't let her out because I am pumping so she has to wait until I am done (15 whole minutes!).

Ten months later, I can't imagine not nursing. I rush home to make the early evening feeding. In turn, she waits for me (even if she's just eaten an hour before). She will latch on correctly and will look at me while giving me her hand to kiss. Every once in a while she latches off but now, she does it to smile up at me as if we share a secret. And then that pain suffered through the first 6 weeks of her life all of a sudden seems worth it (until I am ovulating and then I am reminded of the pain and wonder what the hell I was thinking going through all of that for so long!).

I have conference calls while strapped to my Medela Freestyle, my nipples look like chewed up gummy bears and I'm STILL Mom Sexy!

Sili Recio

Sili is an amazing person but the worst at writing bios. Buying up URL's and thinking of business ideas while HGTV plays in the background is her current specialty. She is the proud mother of a 9-year old artist that continues to ask hard hitting questions about 3 minutes before bedtime in spite of Sili purchasing her The Big Book Of Why. Speaking of books, Sili loves them. So much so that Denene Millner Books is publishing her first children's book in the very near future. Most of Sili's friends live in her computer. She motivates them through thinly veiled threats which led her to purchase MotivationalThuggery.com. Sili is the social media director at MomsRising.org and will pay someone to rewrite this bio…with exposure.